Indexing device



June 22, 1965 E. F. GUsTAFsoN 3,190,021

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INDEXING DEVICE Filed Jan. 19, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 .FE-E

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Il :;|f,l: z z z l Eli i um? U jgsU United States Patent O 3,190,021WDEXING DEVICE Everett F. Gustafson, 1320 Ardmore Ave., Chicago, Ill.Filed dan. 19, 1961, Ser. No. 33,672 1 Claim. (Cl. 40-86) The presentinvention relates generally to devices for storing and indexinginformation. The present invention is particularly suited for use asdirectories and the like.

Book type indexes for telephone and address directories are well knownand have the advantage of low cost and relatively small spacerequirements. However, such directories have great disadvantages whenemployed frequently. A receptionist, or the like, finds it diiicult tolocate a particular person alphabetically listed among a very largenumber of entries. Further, booktype directories cannot be revisedwithout a complete rewriting of the directory. Loose leaf directories ofthe book type are `generally considered to be unsuitable because theyfail to provide sufficient durability.

For these reasons, information has been placed upon removable paperstrips which are removably mounted on large plates. Most directories ofthis type mount the plates on a rotatable spindle, and in this mannermake available a directory which may be maintained current for arelatively small quantity of information. Further, `such directories arecumbersome to use and require very substantial space.

Where a very limited amount of information is required in a directory,and that information is not of a changing nature, such as the mileageand the preferred routes between towns, a rotatable cylinder typedirectory has been employed. The requested information is permanentlyprinted or secured to the exterior surface of the cylinder,

and a window is provided in the housing `of the unit revealing thespecific information requested. Such indexing devices are not adaptedfor indexing relatively large quantities of information. Also, thespecific item of information is diicult and time consuming to locate,and such units provide no means for indexing information which must bemaintained current.

It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a storage andindexing machine which may contain large quantities of information in arelatively small volume.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an indexingmachine capable of storing and indexing large quantities of informationwhich may be utilized to rapidly locate a specific item of information.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an indexingmachine for larger quantities of information than the indexing devicespresently known which may be maintained current in a simple manner.

These and additional objects of the present invention will readilybecome apparent to those skilled in the art from a further consideration`of this disclosure, particularly when viewed in the light of thedrawings, in which:

FIGURE l is a front elevational View of an indexing and storage deviceconstructed according to the teachings of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of FIGURE l;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3--3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a front elevational view of one type of device for securinginformation containing strips in the indexing and storage deviceillustrated in FIGURES 1 through 3; l

FIGURE 5 is a front elevational view of a further type of device forsecuring strips of information to an indexing vand storage device, suchas illustrated in FIGURES 1 through 3; and

ICC

FIGURE 6 is a sectional View illustrating still another means forsecuring the strips in the indexing and storage device of FIGURES 1through 3.

The indexing and storage device illustrated in FIG- URES l through 3 hasa housing 10 which contains a belt 12 which is translatedly disposedadjacent to a window I4 in the face 16 of the housing 1l). Theinformation which is to be stored in the indexing and storage device isplaced on strips 18 which are secured to the belt 12 in a removablemanner. The belt 12 is translatedly disposed between the front 16 of thehousing 10 and a guide plate 2li which confronts the entire opening 14.The front 16 of the housing tu is mounted to the remainder of thehousing on hinges I7 to permit access to the inside of the housing lll.Means are attached to each end of the belt 12 for the purpose oftranslating the belt across the guide plate 20, the means illustrated inthe figures comprising a first spool 22 attached to one end of the belt12 and a second spool 24 attached to the other end of the belt 12. Thespools 22 and 24 are journalled about shafts 26 and 28, respectively.

The housing 1li has a base plate 3l) which is bent normally on the sidesparallel to its longitudinal axis forming parallel walls 36 and `Theside walls 36 and 38 are each provided with three apertures which formthree pairs of apertures di?, 42, and 44, the axis of each pair ofapertures being parallel to each other and equally spaced in a commonplane. The apertures lll) are provided with insert bearings d6, and theshaft 26 is journaled within the bearings ld. In like manner, theapertures 44 are provided with insert bearings 43, and the shaft 23 isjournaled within the insert bearings d8. Each of the spools 22 and 24has a pair of discs 50 secured to opposite ends of a cylinder 52, andthe discs Si) are provided with bearing surfaces 541 which are journaledabout the shafts 26 or 28. In addition, each of the spools 22 and 24 isprovided with a slot S6 extending the entire length of the cylinder 52parallel to the cylindrical axis. The slots 56 receive the ends of thebelt l2, and the belt 12 is folded back upon itself at each end toprovide an open ended straight pocket 58. A rod d@ is disposed withinthe pocket of each end of the belt 12 and extends through the aperture62 in the discs Sil of the spools 22 and 24 at the ends thereof.

The spools 22 and 24 are a portion of a belt translation mechanism, andas illustrated in the figures, the belt translation mechanism providesmeans for positively driving each of the spools 22 and 24. The apertures42 are provided with insert bearings 6d which journal a third shaft 66.The shaft 66 is provided with a pair of pulley wheels 68 and 7i)adjacent to the walls 36 and 3S of the housing 10, respectively. Thepulley wheels 68 and 70 are secured to the shaft 66 and rotate with theshaft, and one end of the shaft 66 is provided with a crank handle 72mounted `to a wheel 74 for rotating the shaft 66. i

A pair of cylindrical spacers 76 are disposed between the wall 35 andthe spool 24 about the shaft 28, and a combination drag and pulley unit77 is disposed on the shaft 28 adjacent to the Awall 33. The drag andpulley unit 77 has a pulley 7S and a spacer Si) which is locked to theshaft 28 by a screw 81. The pulley 78 engages the spacer 80 forrotation. A circular spring spacer 9G between each pulley 80 and spacer'i6 and the housing provides the required drag. A drive belt 82 engagesthe pulley wheel 7@ and pulley 78 and rides within semicircularindentations e4 and 86 in the pulley wheel 70- and pulley 7 8,respectively.

In like manner, a combination drag and pulley unit 87 having at pulleySS and spacer 89 is disposed between the spool 22 and wall 36, and aspring spacer .90 is disposed between the combination unit 37 and thewall 36. `The pulley 3S is connected to the pulley wheel 68 by aflexible il di drive belt 2, hence coupling of the shaft 66 to the spool22. Spacers 94 and 96 are disposed between the spool 22 and the dragspring 91B.

Manual translation of the belt 12 may thus be achieved in eitherdirection by applying rotational power to the handle 72. In manyapplications, it is desirable to translate the belt at a relativelyrapid speed in order to have more rapid access to the larger quantity ofinformation which can be stored upon the belt 12. For this reason, amotor 9S is mounted to the cabinet 10 and coupled to the shaft 66. Inthe particular embodiment here disclosed, the motor 98 is reversible,and has a single shaft extending therethrough which serves as the shaft66. A forward and a reversed switch 10@ and 102 are disposed on Itheface 16 of the cabinet 10, thus permitting the belt to be translated ineither forward or a reverse direction. The handle 72 and wheel 74 may beeliminated from the construction when the motor 9S is employed, however,for some applications it is desirable to utilize both manual andelectrical motor means to drive the belt 12.

As illutrated in FIGURE 4, the belt 12 is provided with a plurality ofpairs of relatively short parallel slots 164 of equal length. Each pairof slots is spaced by a fixed distance designated 10d, the spaceddistance being approximately equal to the lengths of the slots 104. Theportion of the belt 12 between the slots of each pair, designated 108,constitutes a strip which is utilized to retain the strips 1S in aremovable manner to the belt 12. The strips 1S are provided with tabs1113 at the ends thereof which have a dimension normal to the stripsshorter than the lengths of the slots 1134. The tabs 11@ on oppositeends of each strip are inserted through a pair of confronting slots 104so that the strips 1118 pass over the tabs 110 and secures the ends ofthe information strip to the belt 12.

In placing the tabs 110 in the slots, care must be observed to slip thetabs 116 through both of the slots 10d. This occasionally proves to besomewhat inconvenient. For this reason, the construction illustrated inFIGURE 5 has been employed in some constructions. Also, the constructionin FIGURE 5 is adapted Ito automatic production techniques. In thisconstruction, a ribbon 114 is secured at spaced intervals parallel andadjacent to each side of the belt 12. The ribbon 14 is preferablycemented, but may also be sewn, at spaced intervals designated 116 toprovide spaced regions 118 in which the ribbon 114 is not secured to thebelt 12 so that the tabs 110 may be inserted between the ribbon 114 andbelt 12.

FIGURE 6 illustrates the use of adhesive for securing the informationstrips, designated 18A, to the belt 12. In this embodiment of theinvention, the strips 18A are rectangular in shape since outwardlyextending tabs are not required. A layer of adhesive 117 is disposed onthe side of the information strips opposite the information carryingsurface, and the layer 117 adheres to the belt 12 to maintain the strips18A in position.

The adhesive layer 117 may be either of the permanent or removable type,that is, by selecting the type of adhesive, the strips 18A may be eitherpermanently secured to the belt 12 or removable. If changes arerequired, the removable type adhesive is desired, and most adhesives ofthis type will secure the strip a second time, or more, to the belt 12.The belt 12 is preferably constructed of air impermeable material if theremovable type Vfof adhesive is employed in order to prevent drying ofthe adhesive so that strip 13A may again be secured to the belt 12.Particularly suitable belt materials are the relatively air impermeable,stretch resistance plastics, such as Mylar.

The present invention is particularly adapted to directories, such asare employed for telephone numbers or addresses. Such directoriesgenerally are in alphabetical order, thus requiring frequent changes inthe entire order due to necessary revisions to keep the indexing serviceup to date. Since the information strips are readily removable and maybe positioned at other places on the strip or belt 12, the presentdevice is readily suited for such uses. Further, it is to be noted thatthe opening 14 which confronts the belt 12 and the information strips 18have a dimension parallel to the axis of elongation of the belt which isa multiple yof the transverse dimension of the information strips 18. Asa result, a plurality of information strips appear in the opening orwindow 14, so that it is not necessary to stop the belt at the preciselocation of the information strip desired. This facilitates alphabeticalor numerical indexing of the information contained on the belt 12. Y

In order to further simplify and facilitate the selection of aparticular information strip 13 or llA, a rectangular recess 12d isprovided at the upper left hand corner of the opening 1li to reveal thebeginning or left hand edge of one additional strip 18. Each 4of thestrips 1S is provided with an -oversized initial letter to designate'the letter of the alphabet utilized by that strip, and this letter onlyappears in the recess 121i to make it readily apparent to the operatorthat that portion of the alphabet is passing past the opening 14 at thisparticular moment. VIn addition, the motor 93 is a synchronousalternating curr/ent motor and the linkage between the motor 9S and thetranslatable belt 12 is selected to result in a single information strippassing through the indentation each 60th of a second. A fluorescentlight 122 connected to the same power source as the motor 93 ispositioned to illuminate the face 16 of the storage and indexing device,and since the fluorescent light will therefore be synchronized Vwith thetranslation rate of the belt 12, the letter appearing in the indentation120 will appear to be standing still and will be rapidly apparent to theoperator even though the belt 12 is translated at a rapid rate.

FIGURE l also shows a second recess 124 extending Yfrom one of the sidesof the widow 14, preferably the left side as viewed in use. This recesshas a length equal to a multiple of the width of the strips 18 or 13Aand a single large letter 125 representing the first letter of theinformation on the strips is printed on the beltr12 and appears in thisrecess 124. Since the letter must be printed on the belt 12, it ispreferable to use the adhesive type strips 18A, since no tabs 110 arerequired. Also, a speed switch 126 isrprovided in order to reduce thespeed of the motor to maintain synchronism of the large letters 126 withthe pulse rate of the fluorescent lamp 122'. In this manner, theoperator has a choice of speeds, both forward and reverse. If desired,the first two letters can be used for the markings 126.

Those skilled in the art will readily devise many modiications to theforegoing device which are clearly within the intended scope of thisinvention. Further, the invention here set forth will clearly haveapplications above and beyond the specific storage indexing device heredisclosed. It is therefore intended that the scope of the presentinvention be not limited to the foregoing disclosure, but rather only bythe appended claim.

The invention claimed is:

A storage and indexing device comprising in combination, a housinghaving a rectangular window therein with a longitudinal and a transverseaxis, an elongated belt of flexible air impermeable plastic materialdisposed within the housing, means within the housing for transportingthe belt adjacent to the window with the longitudinal axis of the beltdisposed parallel to the longitudinal axis of the window including afirst and a second spool positioned on opposite sides of the window, aplurality of elongated strips adapted to carry informational indicia onone surface thereof, said strips being adjacent to each other and havingtheir longitudinal axes parallel to each other and spaced by a commondistance, the longitudinal axis of the strips being approximately equalto the transverse axis of [the window and the longitudinal axis of thewindow being at least a multiple of the length of the transverse axis ofthe strips, a layer of non-drying adhesive disposed on the side of eachof the strips opposite the indicia and disposed in Contact with thesurface of the belt confronting the window, each said layer securing onestrip on the belt with the longitudinal axis thereof normal to thelongitudinal axis of the window, the longitudinal ends of the stripsbeing aligned with the transverse edges of the window, means within thehousing for transporting of the belt including a reversible electricalmotor mechanically coupled to the lirst and second spools, a rstelectrical switch electrically connected to the motor and mounted on thehousing including an actuation member protruding from the housing forenergizing the motor in the forward direction, and a second electricalswitch electrically connected to the motor and mounted on the housinghaving an actuation member protruding from the housing i for energizingthe motor in the reverse direction, a light source confronting thewindow directed on the strips, said light source producing periodicpulses of light synchronized with the period required for the belt totravel a distance equal to the common distance between longitudinal axesof the strips, wherein the belt has a transverse axis greater than thetransverse axis of the window and carries vindicia von the belt adjacentto one of the longitudinal edges of the strips having a dimension in thedirection parallel to the transverse axes of the strips at least amultiple of the transverse axes of a strip, said indicia being disposedadjacent to the window but confronting the housing, and an indentationdisposed in the housing from the transverse edge of the windowconfronting the path of the indicia on the belt, said indentation havingan axis parallel to the axis yof elongation of the tape greater than thelength of the indicia in said axis.

References Cited bythe Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 542,793 7/95Burgess 40--86 1,065,337 6/13 Burroughs 40-86 X 1,176,628 3/16 Verville40-31 1,291,133 1/19 Raine 40-86 1,375,005 4/21 James 40`31 X 1,496,5156/24 Beckett 40-95 1,804,453 5/31 Basseches 40-340 X 1,976,759 10/34Yanga 40-86 2,080,985 5/37 OConner et a1. 40-52 2,192,072 2/40 Fasig40e-53 2,635,373 4/53 Barkau` 40-31 X 2,722,069 11/55 Overbeek 40-862,729,006 1/56 Olsson 40-31 2,765,552 10/56 Schlaily 40--53 2,853,8039/58 Exton 40-63 X 2,853,817 9/58 Palm 40-86 2,936,540 5/60 Power 40.633,034,241 5/62 Kossor et al. 40-53 JEROME SCHNALL, Primary Examiner.

E. V. BENHAM, Examiner.

